For those who want more context: https://ftw.usatoday.com/2019/09/espn-mnf-yellow-scoreboard-down-distance-graphic-fans-reaction-twitter I'm impressed by the speed! I don't love how huge the graphics are (they're for easy viewing at bars, right?) but I do really like the design.

I believe News 12 Varsity vanished as a channel a few years ago. They streamed a smaller selection of games online using a bare bones staff. They then decided to put some games back on TV on News 12 Traffic and Weather, which is now News 12+. I am unsure of the current situation. Their Twitter account hasn't posted since the end of June, though maybe that's just because school was out. I don't think Fios 1 is doing anything come November.

Coming in November, followed by i24 News and Cheddar in 2020. This comes after Fios is ending its relationship with RNN to produce Fios 1 News. https://www.verizon.com/about/news/verizon-fios-partners-altice-usa-hyperlocal-news-and-content RealNews18's guess was right!

Their studio looks so much better with the new screens.

I was surprised Alex wasn't filling in for Chris at the anchor desk. Perhaps they decided they should do traffic and no one else is capable?

I can't imagine News 12 being available on Fios based on Cablevision's longtime strategy. But Cablevision doesn't exist anymore. It seems Altice views News 12 as an opportunity to make a profit and not just serve as a loss-leader. So maybe there is potential for something!

Perhaps Fios 1 isn't going away? Verizon is ending its contract with RNN but it looks like something else will be there: Will it be Fios 1 but produced by someone else? Will it be more in the way of the new News 12+ route?

Fios 1 News is ending: https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/2019/08/18/verizon-shutter-fios-1-news-costing-150-jobs/2029818001/ Nearly 150 people will lose their jobs by November 16th.

Colleen McVey's goodbye from News 12 Long Island tonight: http://longisland.news12.com/story/40843241/after-3-decades-on-the-air-news-12s-colleen-mcvey-signs-off

They went back to the original Jeff Glor look with the show logo in a horizontal banner, but the red lower-thirds have been turned blue. (Glor's logo eventually got moved into a box on the left side.) I do think the blue looks way better, though still overly simple and uninspired. I'm surprised they went so heavy on the New York City skyline for a broadcast that is leaving New York in the next couple months. Perhaps it's to make the transition to Washington even more obvious. But the buildings do look nice in that studio. At least twice, they put Norah's name on a lower-third. I'm not used to seeing a network evening anchor have their name show up in anything other than a logo during his or her broadcast. Super nerdy detail but this is TVNT so I had to bring it up. The broadcast seemed to have more urgency. It felt tired under Glor.

NBC 4 just returned from a break with a shot of the skyline and you could hear people in the background talking. Then they seemed to switch to their main control room with graphics as Andrew Siff was in the middle of a live report. Updated with some more images.

CBS 2 broke into "Million Dollar Mile" shortly after 9:00 tonight, simulcasting the WLNY newscast anchored by Jessica Moore in the CBSN New York studio. She said that the main studio took a "power hit." She continued on through the 11:00 news. I'm not sure when ABC 7 broke in but they were on in the 9:00 hour as well. I turned on NBC 4 at 11 and it looked like they were in about seven or eight minutes of commercials, followed by about a minute of a black screen. Then Pat Battle appeared anchoring from in front of a monitor but was clearly not in the main studio. No graphics for this newscast.

The CBSNNY ticker is better. I hate endless scrolls. This is more of a "flipper" in most parts. But it's too slow animating between sections. A seven-day forecast for multiple towns seems a bit much. I think it'd be better if it was a today/tonight/tomorrow type of thing with a few words describing the weather, not just icons and high temps. Also, the ticker doesn't match the lower thirds. The time and temperate doesn't line up with the CBS 2 bug. But the CBSNNY graphics have been creeping up on TV. They use the same look in full screens, maps, and the "credit" graphic on the upper left. By the way, they still use the scrolling ticker during CBS This Morning.

This seems so ridiculous. The segment is only important because of the talent, not because of the information being presented? Not sure if I mentioned this earlier but I would be in favor of eliminating regular traffic reports on newscasts. First of all, it doesn't affect a lot of the audience. (I have no idea what the percentage might be. Wish I had more data.) Second, my guess is that, by the time you get to the area of the incident, it'll be different. A slowdown caused by a normal accident might have been solved. A new incident may have popped up. Traffic on radio seems to make way more sense. (Not to mention Google Maps and Waze.) Of course, if there's a major incident, that could be reported more as a news story, perhaps with the chopper. But traffic reports shouldn't be dependent on whether the traffic anchor is available. It should be based on the need of the segments.

I've kept wondering about this and came up with a new theory in the last few days: Perhaps they're using Elise as a "buffer" of sorts. This way, John's fans won't take it out on Bill Evans, if that is indeed the way this is going. The anger about John being pushed out can fade away and then, in a few months, Bill can get a fresh start without the baggage of having directly replaced a popular, longtime personality. As far as I know, Elise hasn't been added to any morning promos. There is something that feels quite temporary about her being there. I also just can't see executives at CBS 2 going, "ABC 7 just brought back Sam Champion. We have to one-up them with Elise Finch!" (No offense to Elise, of course.) I don't know if this is logical or if stations really plan anchor changes out like this... but it's the best I've got.